Week 27 - Southern Sweden

The week started with a visit to the workshop. Since the motorhome was there all day, I grabbed my bike and rode to downtown Karlskrona. I used the free wifi to get some things done and wandered around the city. When I picked up the motorhome, I was informed that the wheel bearing was broken. However, it could not be replaced because the part was not in stock.

I didn't want to wait in Karlskrona for more days, so I decided to visit another workshop on my way. Probably the workshop manager could see my desperation (or my charm was convincing ;-)), as he promised to call workshops for me and make an appointment. We called various workshops for a whole hour until we finally found one that a) can lift the motorhome and b) has time. Therefore, I will go to the next workshop on Tuesday. Hopefully, this will end the series of breakdowns...

On Wednesday, I finally continued my journey. I went to the Lunnabacken Nature Reserve, which also has a local museum. Unfortunately, the buildings are only open on weekends, but the area was accessible.

On Thursday, I continued to the Hisso Nature Reserve, north of Växjö, where I took a beautiful hike. Only the many mosquitos spoiled my day.

On Friday, I visited the Nydala Monastery. The monastery is the oldest Cistercian monastery in Sweden. I stayed a bit north of Sandhem. My hiking plans were thwarted by the weather, so on Saturday I went directly to Trollhättan.

The town is known for its old locks. The oldest one dates back to 1800. The newer ones are still in operation. There are also waterfalls and a large hydropower plant that is over 100 years old. The name Trollhättan probably means 'passing a dangerous obstacle' and refers to the ships that had to bypass the waterfalls back then.

My parking spot is right by one of the locks on the river. My hike here followed the river valley and the different locks. Of course, I couldn't miss the view points at the top of the hill. At one of the locks, I met a couple from Hamburg, he is an entrepreneur and she is a doctor. Their best friend lives in Schorndorf. It seems like my hometown is really well-known throughout Germany ;-)

For those who look at the map and see where Trollhättan is, might already be able to guess where I will be heading in the next few weeks :-)